


Secret Sanctuary

by lunaseemoony



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst, Bittersweet, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Post-Time War, TARDIS rooms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-08
Updated: 2016-02-08
Packaged: 2018-05-19 03:56:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5952778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunaseemoony/pseuds/lunaseemoony
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose makes an incredible, bittersweet discovery while exploring the TARDIS.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Secret Sanctuary

**Author's Note:**

> I'm working on uploading fics from tumblr to complete collections.

Rose told the Doctor she needed sleep to recover from their marathon fighting swarms of cybernetic shrimp. The harrowing adventure sought to a surge of adrenaline that had yet to dissipate by the time she’d wanted to retreat to bed. She’d vainly hoped that a hot shower, a warm cuppa and a good lie down would ease her into sleep. Her bed didn’t deserve the wallop it took from all her tossing about. So although her legs were threatening to seize up, Rose decided the best way to burn off the excess adrenaline was a lap around the TARDIS. She’d only been traveling for a few weeks, so the question of what might qualify as a lap was at the forefront of her mind as she set off from her bedroom. 

Her room was new, the Doctor told her. The fresh coat of mauve pain on the coral walls, as well as the thick creamy carpeting gave credence to his claims. But every night she’d slept on the ship she’d been lulled by the comforting musk of old books with just a hint of brine, as if she slept in a seaside library. Every other room she’d seen thus far was quite different. None were treated with paint or decked out in carpets. The ancient briny musk was thick in the air. In addition to the ever present humming of the ship, this was the only constant. The coral walls went through gradients of color as she traveled the ship. All of the Doctor’s rooms were framed in a deep leather brown coral, whereas the common areas were a mix of gold and a faded wine color. 

So Rose knew she was wandering into unexplored territory (for her at least) when the corridors began transitioning from a bright gold to a deep green. Most of these pathways were dimly lit by the small roundels on the walls. But these halls were lit from giant windows in the ceiling. It looked as though the sky above was a deep cobalt blue, though Rose figured this had to be a projection of some sort. 

She wandered in through an open archway at the end of a hall. No more than two steps in, Rose was twirling about to make certain she was still on the TARDIS. The archway was still there, but beyond it was a giant glass dome at least a quarter mile high. But the room itself stretched as far as her eyes could see, a world within the TARDIS. The room was split into sections, each with its own climate. Rose was surrounded by creatures of all sized and shapes. 

But no two were the same. 

“I see you stumbled upon the sanctuary.”

Rose jumped. He braced her shoulders and patted them gently. “Who - what - are they, Doctor? They’re each so different.” 

“Victims of the Time War, Rose. It affected everyone: big, small, sentient and not. These creatures are all the last of their kind, living out the last of their days safe and in peace.”


End file.
